Autodesk Fabrication 2016 Software Products Now Available

[bstacks]

All,
You should start to see the new releases of the Fabrication products appear in Autodesk Account (if you are on Subscription) and on the Fabrication website from today.

We are excited to finally be able to publicly talk about and give access to the new version of the software. A lot of work as gone into what we have delivered, and it is only the beginning!

The key things this year include:

Better Revit interoperability. Your Fabrication databases now work inside of Revit 2016, which is pretty cool! ITM is now native to Revit. This is going to benefit those that need to produce Revit deliverables at the end of the project and those that are looking at Revit as a platform to model in in the future.

To Import and Export .MAJ through Revit, you require a plug-in. It is free and it is due to drop by the end of the month. It will be available to download from Autodesk Exchange. The process is relatively simple, and it lets you bring a .MAJ file into Revit with supported content.

API. Hopefully this makes the options for custom development so much greater. We already have several partners looking to create great add-in tools that complements the functionality that already exists in the products. It also means more people can get involved, as the API uses .NET which is more widely understood that scripting. Have fun!

Unlocked content. Yes, we decided to unlock all the ITMs we ship with the product. Why did we do this? To create more options for our customers. Every customer is different and have different content needs, so we think it will be better for Autodesk to reinvest its energy in making the content creation process simpler and developing value-added tools that support the process. By unlocking the content we want to make it easier for customers to support their own needs without having to rely on Autodesk.

We hope you enjoy the new releases and, above all, appreciate the direction we are going and understand our commitment to the industry. The next few years are going to be great! I personally am really looking forward to continuing to work on developing these tools.

Below you’ll find some answers to some frequently asked questions. Hopefully this helps remove any doubt. Andy and I are also happy to answer questions here – but please understand that we can’t discuss future technology and specific time frames.

Thanks,
Brett Stacks
Product Manager – Autodesk Fabrication

Questions & Answers
Does this mean no more development on the Fabrication products? Absolutely not! We’ve just extended our development to Revit, too. We will be continuing to develop all the platforms to improve workflows for our customers and provide as many options as possible to accommodate the way you want to work. This first release is only our first showing. Things will continue to improve and enhancements will be released periodically, as always.

What do you mean when you say ‘supported content’ in Revit? At this time, not all ITMs are supported by Revit. Certain ITM types will not be brought into Revit. This includes flex duct, structural members, air terminals, and mechanical equipment. In place of these components, you can use Revit Family (RFA) based components using the category's standard placement tools.

Is this release intended to enable me to fully detail in Revit? No, that has never been the intention of this release. The intention of this release is to provide a better way to bring .MAJ files into Revit and out of Revit, while giving you public access of the great development work we are doing to provide more modelling options for customers. For those that want to model in Revit using their Fabrication databases, you certainly can, and then export your models into Fabrication for documentation and field preparation. At the end of the day it is about using the tool that best meets the need of the job. We advise that documentation/spooling should take place in the AutoCAD environment until Revit is optimized to do such activities.

Can the functionality in Revit convert a model designed with Revit families? The existing functionality still plays a role here, and the RIF process still exists. We’ll be continuing to work on this to improve this workflow, but the inherent issues will always exist. As Andy once said “we can’t magically fix poor design models”. If the design model isn’t construction-ready, then there will always be some level of remodelling required with or without a conversion feature.

ITM or RFA? For the work you do, ITM is what we would suggest you continue to invest in. We’ve made Revit read ITM files for a reason. Firstly, it safeguards the investment you’ve already made. Secondly, Revit families can be cumbersome and sometimes contain more detail than you need. Additionally, RFAs are model-based, while ITMs are parametric. This makes a lot of tasks easier. As development continues and we make our way through the year, we’ll be releasing more guidance of the use of ITM and RFA in Revit.

[bstacks]

Here is the What's New video: http://www.aec-projects.com/webcast/whats-new-with-autodesk-fabrication-2016/

[fishandchips]

Have to go look for the top of my head, which just blew off during Andy's demo. 

[bparrell]

See if you can get a refund Fish.

[Admin]

Here is the What's New video: http://www.aec-projects.com/webcast/whats-new-with-autodesk-fabrication-2016/

Extract from an Autodesk announcement:
You’ll see on the landing page, we’ve provided an email alias where you can direct any questions you may have after viewing the webcast directly to our team of Autodesk Fabrication software experts, including Andy and Sam. This email feature will be available until end of day April 24th, so please make sure to watch this informative webcast soon and get your questions answered.

Kristina Jones
Autodesk, Inc.

Email link:
fabrication.enquiries@autodesk.com

[cadbyken]

Very interesting video.  Like the idea of being able to take Fab files into Revit and being native.  No clunky IFC files required.

[Sam Robins]

Hi All,

The Revit Extension for Fabrication is now available to download:

https://apps.exchange.autodesk.com/RVT/en/Detail/Index?id=appstore.exchange.autodesk.com%3arevitextensionforfabrication_windows64%3aen

Thanks,
Sam

[lsm_drafter]

Looks like progress. I'm glad to see that development has continued. During the testing phase of this while on the Autodesk Labs it was indicated that further development was contingent on user feedback. While Revit to AutoCAD functionality is a plus, it still does not address the increased overhead for those of us that manufacture our products (CAMduct). Our current workflow looks like this:

AutoCAD/Autodesk Fabrication CADmep>Autodesk Fabrication CAMduct

To incorporate Revit into our workflow, just to appease Architects/Engineers/and Autodesk (who sold Revit to all these designers as "the next big thing") simply adds more layers of overhead to our already overly competitive (and demanding) workflow and would look more like this:

Revit>AutoCAD/Autodesk Fabrication CADmep>Autodesk Fabrication CAMduct>Then round-trip back to Revit 

True progress (in my eyes) will be when the workflow is brought back into a straight line that looks like this:

Revit>Autodesk Fabrication CAMduct 

Viola'!

Of course, then they would have to retire AutoCAD and Autodesk Fabrication CADmep! 

So I am left to dream....   

[davidratx]

Revit>Autodesk Fabrication CAMduct 

Viola'!

Of course, then they would have to retire AutoCAD and Autodesk Fabrication CADmep! 

So I am left to dream....   

Just my opinion but your dreams are likely to come true.

[lsm_drafter]

Actually, they may be there already. The "maj" file is exported straight from Revit. I guess I should have looked at the "Revit Integration" video before jumping to conclusions!

http://www.autodesk.com/products/fabrication-products/features/fabrication-CADmep/all/gallery-view

More research is warranted! 

[davidratx]

Actually, they may be there already. The "maj" file is exported straight from Revit. I guess I should have looked at the "Revit Integration" video before jumping to conclusions!

http://www.autodesk.com/products/fabrication-products/features/fabrication-CADmep/all/gallery-view

More research is warranted! 

There are some core functions that still need to be addressed to make it a full Revit experience but I think they've made their intentions pretty clear...

[cadbob]

It will only get better! The best part is the ITM's will be in Revit along with the same Shared Database! The best CAD Software Bolt on will be available as the Best Revit Bolt On!

[lsm_drafter]

There are some core functions that still need to be addressed to make it a full Revit experience but I think they've made their intentions pretty clear...

Most certainly. I'm guessing some of the database setup may be easier from within AutoCAD (can't say for sure at this point), but the ability to export the maj file from Revit is a huge leap forward. To leave this functionality solely to a third party developer was just wrong...

Autodesk gets kudos for this one!

[davidratx]

There are some core functions that still need to be addressed to make it a full Revit experience but I think they've made their intentions pretty clear...

Most certainly. I'm guessing some of the database setup may be easier from within AutoCAD (can't say for sure at this point), but the ability to export the maj file from Revit is a huge leap forward. To leave this functionality solely to a third party developer was just wrong...

Autodesk gets kudos for this one!

I completely agree, sending models back and forth between platforms without loosing the intelligence is pretty freakin cool.

[cadbyken]

It truly is "a whole new world". 

Yes, try getting that song out of your head.